Israel has always been considered the closest ally of the United States – not only in the Middle East, but also in the world. And not just an ally, but also a "best friend" – this is how the small Mediterranean country was called in the White House, the State Department, and the US Congress. Of course, in relations between the United States and Israel, as in any friendship, there have been periods of rapprochement and cooling.

It was seriously tested during the presidency of Barack Obama, who was not considered a "friend of Israel" in Jerusalem. Four years of Donald Trump's presidency returned the US-Israeli relations to their former warmth, although even here it was not without pitfalls. If Obama wasn't liked by the Israeli right, Trump was allergic to the Israeli left.

When the loyal "Obama" Joe Biden reigned in the White House, Jerusalem was strained. And for good reason: although Biden has always stated that he is a defender of Israel, sincerely loves the country and its people, is proud of his friendship with the influential Jewish lobby in the United States, his sympathies are on the side of the Israeli left. And the right, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Biden, like most of his party members, does not like. In part, because Netanyahu had too good a relationship with ex-President Trump, which "angered many Democrats."

The Biden administration was quite satisfied that in the summer of 2021, the intransigent Netanyahu was replaced by Naftali Bennett, and Bennett was replaced by the centrist Yair Lapid. But the center-right coalition could not stay in power, and Netanyahu won the snap elections in November 2022 again. Bibi, as he is called in Israel, took over as prime minister on December 29, 2022 — and immediately announced the preparation of judicial reform. This was the beginning of his cabinet's conflict with the Biden administration, which put Israel, as some American journalists put it, on the brink of civil war.

Israel, although considered a model of democracy in the Middle East, can hardly be considered such from the point of view of the classical model of the balance of the three branches of power – legislative, executive and judicial. It is the judiciary in this country that is stronger than the other two. And so much stronger that some lawyers speak with alarm about the revival of the "rule of judges" – there was such a period in the ancient history of the Jewish people. In addition, Israel's judicial system was not politically neutral. As noted by the American right-wing portal Breitbart, she "has long been a stronghold of the secular European elite of Israel, who opposed the growing political power of the religious community of Israel, as well as immigrants from the Middle East and Africa."

The goal of the reform, proclaimed by the Netanyahu government in January 2023, was to limit the excessively increased influence of Israeli judges on state policy. In particular, the Knesset was to receive the right by a majority of 61 votes to re-pass the law, which was repealed by the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court was deprived of the right to discuss the basic laws of Israel (replacing the Constitution in the Jewish state), but most importantly, the appointment of judges was proposed to be carried out under the control of the Knesset. Now the judicial system of Israel is not controlled by anyone, the judges themselves decide who and where to appoint. Thus, the reform was supposed to strengthen the system of checks and balances, which, generally speaking, is considered mandatory for any developed democracy. "Many of the proposed reforms reflect existing constitutional practices in the U.S. and other countries," notes American writer and journalist Joe Pollack.

But in Washington, this "mirroring" of American practices was disapproved of.

The Biden administration has repeatedly warned Netanyahu that he should not rush into judicial reform because it could jeopardize Israeli democracy. "The administration also underscored its support for LGBTQ and Palestinian rights to show Netanyahu that he must rein in his extremist allies," Politico wrote.

Here's the thing. Israel's current government, led by Netanyahu, is a coalition government. The coalition, in addition to the party of the prime minister himself (Likud), includes extreme right-wing, orthodox, nationalist and even ultra-nationalist parties (Shas, the Union of the United Torah, Otzma Yehudit, the Religious Zionism bloc and others). For these parties, the left-liberal orientation of Israeli elites is unacceptable — hence the White House's concern about LGBTQ rights: from the far right, sexual minorities are an abomination that has no place in Israel's sacred land. As for the rights of the Palestinians, the fears of the Biden administration are more than justified: the leader of "Religious Zionism" Bezalel Smotrich generally denies the existence of the Palestinian people (he, by the way, has repeatedly repeated that he is a "proud homophobe").

The U.S. reaction has been more than nerve-wracking. "When the judicial system is subjugated," writes three-time Pulitzer Prize winner Thomas Friedman, "Israel will be more like autocracies like Hungary and Turkey than Israel, which has always been familiar to the world. Both Netanyahu and his partners sought such political control over the courts beyond any other priorities that guided them, putting the country on the brink of civil war.

To prevent such a turn of events, the White House resorted to outright pressure on its "best friend". But all the diplomatic efforts don't seem to have helped. Even Biden's call to Netanyahu, during which the US president persuaded the Israeli prime minister to "find a compromise on the issue of judicial reform," did not help.

Almost immediately after the Netanyahu government announced the preparation of judicial reform, demonstrations and protest rallies began in the country.

These performances were not spontaneous: they were well organized and financed. The Newspaper of Israel published a sensational article: a certain "high-ranking government official" from Netanyahu's entourage said that mass protests against judicial reform "were partially financed by the Biden administration." "This protest is being organized and funded by millions of dollars," said the official, whom the newspaper does not name. - This is an organization of a very high level. There is a center from which all the demonstrators disperse in an organized manner."

The coordinator of this center is most likely the US Ambassador to Jerusalem, Thomas Naids. According to Breitbart, Naids did not hesitate to interfere in Israel's internal affairs, strongly advising Netanyahu that the reform should be "slowed down." This is how American diplomats usually behave in third world countries, but certainly not in states that are considered Washington's closest allies and "best friends."

Last Sunday , after Netanyahu dismissed Israeli Defense Minister Galant, who spoke in favor of suspending the reform - an unprecedented crisis broke out in the country. More than 600,<> people took to the streets of Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. In Jerusalem, a mob besieged Netanyahu's residence. In Tel Aviv, one of the city's main thoroughfares, the Ayalon Highway, was completely blocked by protesters. In Israeli cities, fires made of car tires were burning. Organized groups fought bravely against the police, who in some places sided with the protesters. All this was very reminiscent of the "color revolutions" in Serbia or Georgia, as well as the notorious "Maidan" in Kiev.

But for the first time in history, the United States staged such a "revolution" in a country that is considered its closest ally and equal partner.

And Netanyahu backed down. On Monday morning, when the bonfires of tires were still burning on the Ayalon, he issued a statement on the suspension of judicial reform. "I will not lead the country to civil war," the prime minister said. The adoption of the reform has been postponed until the summer – by which time Netanyahu expects to overcome Washington's resistance. But for now, the U.S. can celebrate victory.

"Thank God that Israeli civil society has forced Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to suspend for now his attempt to establish his control over Israel's independent judiciary and gain free rein to rule the way he wants. But all of this has laid bare a new and troubling reality for the United States: For the first time, Israel's leader has become an irrational actor, posing a danger not only to Israelis but also to important American interests and values," Thomas Friedman wrote in a column in The New York Times.

This is nothing short of a blatant call for the overthrow of the Israeli prime minister, who has become a threat to the US democratic administration.

Of course, the main conflict here is not between the US and Israel, but between groups of liberal-globalists and conservative traditionalists in both countries. Netanyahu will stand , and the prospects of candidates from the Democratic Party in the US presidential elections in 2024 can be put a big fat cross. The "revolutionaries" funded by American NGOs and patronized by the U.S. ambassador to Israel will win — and Republicans, including, of course, Trump, will have a hard time.

The author's point of view may not coincide with the position of the editorial board.